An Inspired Chat with Chef Carl Leatherberry Jr & Chef Carl of Wayne County Mi

We’re looking forward to introducing you to Chef Carl Leatherberry Jr & Chef Carl . Check out our conversation below.

Chef Carl & Chef Carl , we’re thrilled to have you with us today. Before we jump into your intro and the heart of the interview, let’s start with a bit of an ice breaker: What’s more important to you—intelligence, energy, or integrity?
All three are important, because each one has its own significant impact. But the one that stands out to me is energy.

Energy can be used,expressed, and felt. Whether it’s negative, positive, or neutral, people can feel energy.

It’s important how I use my energy, and how I receive it from others. Whether I’m having a good or bad day, I try not to use or express my energy in a negative way. If someone around me is letting off bad energy, I don”t receive it in a negative way.

The wrong energy can make or break a deal.

Can you briefly introduce yourself and share what makes you or your brand unique?
My name is Chef Carl Leatherberry, Jr. I am a professional chef and entrepreneur born in St.Louis MO, raised in Detroit MI.

I’m the owner of DeCara Serai LLC, and Smokey Pit BBQ . What makes my companies so interesting and unique is I take simple heart warming home meals, your favorite comfort foods, and not only elevate the look or taste, but also the experience itself. There’s a story behind ever plate that expresses the love we have for our craft. The special part about it is it’s all truly inspired by LOVE! Right now, I’m working on branding my daughter’s legacy to show the world that creativity was in her DNA, and that her creativity will forever live in me.

Appreciate your sharing that. Let’s talk about your life, growing up and some of topics and learnings around that. What did you believe about yourself as a child that you no longer believe?
My childhood surroundings led me to believe that I was going to become a product of my environment: crime, violence, drugs, gangs, etc., the list goes on. Poverty is real and survival breeds deftness.

Now, I no longer believe that I am fated to be a product of my environment. I took that situation and reversed it a long time ago.

I used everything I witnessed and every bad experience I had to do a complete 180. I did NOT want to be like what I experienced or be a part of it. I had to take the good and the bad along the way; but in the end, I had to believe in myself, use my skills to make a change, and grow to become the man I was born to be.

What have been the defining wounds of your life—and how have you healed them?
I’ve suffered many wounds in life, as we all have. The wounds that was most defining was the death of four women who were paramount in my life: My wife , My grandmother, My baby’s mother, and the most painful my only daughter who all where very dear to me. Their deaths happened one after another in such a short time; the wounds are still healing.

Believe it or not that’s what strengthens me. I never gave up on anything in my life, except for that which was not for me.
Adversity: I don’t avoid it, I adapt, and try to stay positive. We can’t change what already happened, so learn from it.

Resilience becomes an attribute when you practice it.

I think our readers would appreciate hearing more about your values and what you think matters in life and career, etc. So our next question is along those lines. Is the public version of you the real you?
Yes! Very, very much so. I say that because a facade is just that, a facade. I’ve learned that puting on an act is only for the theater.

People like originality, the new comes from authentic originality. Authentic originality comes from the person that creates it in their mind. If it becomes a work of art or a literal piece, it’s considered original something new.

So be who you are, instead of imitating what you see.

Growing up I’ve seen things that inspired, but it wasn’t until I started developing my own ways, thoughts, creativity, and applied that to my life, that’s when other people took notice. I inspired them, with authentic originality and that’s “ME”.

Thank you so much for all of your openness so far. Maybe we can close with a future oriented question. When do you feel most at peace?
I feel most at peace when I’m in the kitchen creating and developing ideas inside of me. Sometimes I don’t have a clue about what I’m gonna come up with. But even I’m amazed at times to see the end results, and I say “WOW, I did that!”.
I’m at peace when I’m alone in the kitchen making pastas, fresh breads, and mixing spices for my dishes. It’s cathartic.

When the customer expresses their experience with my dish, it puts me at peace; that’s why I love what I do.

That’s my legacy. The legacy of DeCara Se’rai.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: 1ChefCarl, Smokey Pit BBQ
• Facebook: Carl Leatherberry Chef Carl, Chef Carl Gourmet Experience
• Other: [email protected]

Image Credits
My beloved late daughter DeCara Se’rai Leatherberry